Display rack



March 4, 1958 M. J. SHNITZLER ET AL 2 DISPLAY RACK Filed Oct. 18. 1951 r 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 NW I l l I? 3o I 33 THU I5 I l6 Q 3s n3 2 I2 IO I5 I II 38 1o I l r 1 22 g 29 I ii 22 Fi I 2o 1. a n

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ATTORNEY March 4, 1958 M. J. SHNITZLER ET AL 2,

DISPLAY RACK 2 Sheets-Sheet Filed Oct. 18, 1951 Fig. 8

INVENTORS A United States Patent (3 2,825,466 DISPLAY RACK Meyer J. Shnitzler, Brookline, and Robert L. Sinclair, Cambridge, Mass., assignors to The Gillette Company, a corporation of Delaware Application October 18, 1951, Serial No. 251,904

9 Claims. (Cl. 211-49) This invention comprises a new and improved rack for displaying attractively and conspicuously to prospective customers sales articles arranged in stack formation. The rack is herein disclosed in its application to safety razor sets packaged in cases which are more or less ornamental in their appearance and which it is desired to display in connection with advertising notice with a minimum visible interference by the rack structure. As herein shown, the specific razor set case comprises a base portion and a cover portion hinged together and presenting approximately a median line of division.

In general it is the object of the invention to provide a rack that may be manufactured and assembled at low cost and in which the razor set cases or similar packaged goods may be conveniently presented and as conveniently removed one by one as required. The rack as herein shown comprises essentially two parts, a base portion which may be shaped to present a flat supporting face, and an upstanding metal bail having spaced legs or rails that engage the rear wall of the cases and thus support them without in any way obscuring the customers view thereof.

As herein shown, the rear wall of each razor set case comprises end sections and an intermediate panel or wall portion defined in part by oppositely directed vertical grooves or convolutions, forming for the legs of the bail passages that extend vertically for substantially the full height of the case. These grooves or convolutions are spaced to receive the rails or legs of the rack with slight sliding friction. The lower ends of the rails may be anchored in any suitable fashion in the base and spaced thereby to correspond with the spacing of the vertical grooves in the rear of the cases. The rails are maintained in parallel relation and connected at their upper ends by a transverse member which preferably is somewhat offset or includes an offset loop to provide additional clearance for the free vertical removal of the razor set cases, and more particularly, the uppermost case in a stack carried by the rack. It is, of course, desirable to effect this removal without binding and so without any necessity of straining or distorting the cases which are stiff and substantially rigid in their structure.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the vertical grooves or convolutions in the rear side of the cases open inwardly toward each other and thus the legs or rails of the bail through frictional engagement with the walls of the grooves are positively held against outward spreading movement by interlocking engagement with the cases. The rails are thus left free to be sprung temporarily toward each other sufliciently to permit the removal of any selected case in the stack although the rack is designed particularly to facilitate removal as well as replacement of the cases by vertical movement.

Another important feature of the invention consists in provision for detachably supporting an advertising notice in the form of an upright panel extending above the top of the rack and the cases arranged therein. This panel may, if desired, also serve as a closing panel filling ice the space between the rails of the rack and presenting to view additional advertising matter when one or more razor set cases are removed from the stack. Such a panel improves the looks of the rack when the latter is partially empty by preventing it from presenting a spindly or skeleton appearance.

These and other features of the invention will be best understood and appreciated from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof, selected for purposes of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a view in perspective of a rack containing a stack of six razor set cases as viewed obliquely from behind.

Fig. 2 is a corresponding view in side elevation, showing a portion of the base broken away.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the rack and cases therein.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the base alone with parts broken away.

Figs. 5, 6, 7 and 8 are fragmentary sectional views on the corresponding lines shown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 9 is a view in perspective of the rack as it appears without the razor set cases, and

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary view in perspective showing the connection of an advertising card to the bail of the rack.

The particular goods which the present illustrated rack is designed to display comprise the safety razor set cases shown in Figs. 1-3. These cases form the subject matter of co-pending application Serial No. 217,946 filed March 28, 1951, now Patent No. 2,702,116 dated February 15, 1955 to which reference may be had for further details of their construction. Each case comprises a base or tray 10 of rectangular outline having a front wall which carries a latch element 11 and a rear wall comprising narrow corner sections 12 and a panel or intermediate section 13 herein shown as being inwardly offset. The panel 13 is defined in part by vertical reentrant passages or grooves 14 which are formed as a convolution connecting the corner sections 12 with the intermediate panel 13. As will be apparent from Fig. 1, these grooves may extend substantially for the full height of the tray or base 10, although they taper upwardly to some extent and open toward each other in opposite directions. its upper edge with a square notch 15 of substantial size.

The case includes a cover 16 pivotally connected to the base or tray by pivots (not shown) to swing about a horizontal axis. The cover has a rearwardly and downwardly projecting arm or projection 17 designed to swing freely in the notch 15 of the base. The rear walls of the base 10 and the cover '16 are curved forwardly and upwardly and merge into each other to give a curved effect to the case. Similarly, the front wall of the cover is smoothly curved and each cover is provided with a pair of spaced transverse ribs 18 which serve as bearing surfaces for the next higher case in the stack. The ribs 18 safeguard the cover against scratching, and this is desirable since the cover may be constructed of any transparent plastic material.

Referring particularly to Figs. 4-9, the base 20 of the rack is rectangular in outline and may be constructed of any desired material; for example, it may be molded of any suitable resinous plastic. The base 20 is generally fiat with beveled edges and has an aperture 21 of substantial area located symmetrically therein. The base as herein shown may be of skeleton construction with each member of substantially the same thickness in order to facilitate molding. The rear wall of the base is provided with a pair of transverse horizontal passages 22 which open to the rear edge of the base and also through its upper surface. Each of these trans The rear wall is also provided at i was passages terminates in sage 23 terminated by a wall. These passages are of such dimensions as to receive the feet ofthe bail which will be presently described; Ineach side member of the base 20 is provided'a rectangular aperture 24 and a with panel-securement means comprising a long slot 28 having angularly inclined ends and this is supplemental and the rear wall reinforced throughout a portion of its lengthby an upstanding rib 29. An advertising or descriptive card may be inserted in thezslot 28 and this card, if desired, may extend upwardly above the stack of cases in the rack.

The ball is constructed of spring metal, preferably and as herein shown of round steel wire, and comprises a pair of upright parallel legs or rails 30, 30, each having a forwardly turned foot 31. The feet 31 are disposed in parallel relation, of such dimensions as to enter freely the passages 22 above described and of a length sufficient to I extend from the offset passages 23 to a point substantially beyond the transverse partition 27 as shown, for example, in Fig. 2. At their upper ends the legs 30 are connected =by a transverse top member 32 herein shown as formed integral with the'legs and including a loop offset rearwardly throughout the intermediate portion of the member and connected to the rails through rearwardly diverging sections. The legs 30 of the bail are normally biased inwardly and engage against the inner ends of the offset passages 23 when permitted to do so. The ball is assembled with the base by springing the legs 34) apart sufiiciently to enter themin the horizontal passages 22. With the legs in this forced apart position, the bail is moved forwardly to the inner ends of the passages 22 and in this movement the feet'31 pass inwardly above the partitions 27. When the legs 30 are now released, they automatically spring inwardly into the full line position shown in Fig. 9. In this position, the feet are located between the partition 27 and the upper wall of the base 20. 'In Fig. 9 the dot and dash position of the legs 30 on the right-hand side of the figure indicates the position of the leg while sprung outwardly in position to pass through the passage 22,1.It will be seen that in its final positionthe feet 31 positively prevent any rocking movement of the bail and hold it securely in upright position. The bail can only be disengaged by forcibly separating the legs 30 and moving them rearwardly out through the passages 22.

The feet 31 positively prevent rocking of the .bail as already stated and it should be noted that they also prevent twisting of the bail as a whole and tend always to hold the bail squarely in its proper position upon the base. If the bail should be forcibly twisted, it will immediately return to its initial position on removal of the distorting force.

Having assembled the rack in the manner indicated, the razor set cases may be conveniently assembled thereon by threading the legs or rails 30 through the vertical grooves or convolutions 14 in the rear walls of the body or tray 13 of the case and slipping each case downwardly until it rests upon the base 29 or upon a case already in position thereon. It will be'noted that since the grooves 14 open inwardly, the cases engage the legs 30 of the bail in such a manner as positively to prevent separating displacement thereof, and consequently hold them positively in their interlocked relation with the base 20. The legs 30 are thus held positively against lateral movement in either direction. They cannot move inwardly by reason of their engagement with the inner walls of the offset passages 23 and they cannot move outwardly by reason of their location in the inwardly opening grooves 14 of the cases.

Our novel construction, therefore, possesses the advantage that it imposes no initial or permanent stress on the a shortinwardly offset pasl i and desirable features of the goods when the rack is dis- 33 somewhat below the loop 34.

base and so facilitates theuse of molded plastic material for that member. The rails of the bail are so biased that they are in a substantially neutral condition of no stress when in contact with the inner end walls of the offset passages 23. They are locked in that position by their engagement with the inwardly opening passages 14 of the cases and so maintained positively against displacement in all directions and without stress of any kind, such as might tend to crack a plastic base if unrelieved.

Figs. 2 and 10 illustrate the novel construction and mounting of an advertising display herein shown as comprising a lower panel 33 folded at its upper edge to form a loop 34 corresponding in length to the straight intermediate otfset portion of the connecting member 32 of the hail, the folded-over end portion of the panel being secured to the body thereof by staples as shown in Fig. 10. The material 'of the panel is cut away at both ends of the loop so that the member 32 may be inserted through th loop in mounting the panel. a a

An upper card or panel 35 is secured in place upon the lower panel in position to stand conspicuously above the top of the lower panel and the rack announcing the price played upon a counter or in a show window.

The upper card 35 is passed through a transverse slot 37 located in the folded-over portion of the lower panel The card 35 is shouldered to fit into the slot 37 and extends downwardly in a reduced section 36 almost to the base. It is provided with a thumb tab 38 near its lower end for convenience in pulling the card down into interlocking engagement with the folded-over portion of the lower panel at the slot 37. If itis desired to stiifen the upper card 35.and prevent breaking at the slot 37, a reinforcing insert of cardboard or other sheet material may be slipped into the slot 37 behind the card and interlocked in place.

The lower panel 33 fills in the space between the upright rails 30 of the bail and is progressively uncovered as the razor set cases are removed one by one from the stack. Additional advertising text is thus disclosed and the rack is prevented from presenting a spindly or skeleton effect. The lower panel 33 is shaped at its lower end to fit into the slot 28 which extends parallel to the rib 29 in the base of the rack. Preferably the lower edge of this panel is notched to inter-lockwith the base When-it has been inserted through the slot 28, which as shown in Fig. 4, is provided with inclined end sections.

The present application constitutes a continuation-inpart of our prior applications SerialN'os. 167,801, new

Patent No. 2,735,552, and 217,946, filed June 13, 1950 and March 28, 1951, respectively, the latter having now issued as U. S. Letters Patent No. 2,702,116 dated February 15, 1955.

Having thus disclosed our invention and described in detail an illustrative embodiment thereof, we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A display rack-for razor set cases of stiff, substantially rigid structure, comprising a base, an upright bail of spring Wire having fixed parallel rails anchored in the base at their lower ends, and a connecting member disposed between the upper ends of said rails which includes a rearwardly offset loop disposed wholly behind said parallel rails, in combination with a stack of cases, each having in its rear wall a pair of vertical grooves opening toward each other, defining in part an inwardly ofiset panel in the case and fitting upon the said rails, thereby holding them against separating movement and leaving the cases free for vertical removal from theupper. end of the connected rails.

2. A display rack for razor set cases, comprising a flat base, a bail having upright parallel legs anchored in the base and held in fixed relation to each other and a top connecting portion including a rearwardly extending loop disposed entirely between and rearwardly of the legs of the bail in position to support an upright advertising card,

asaaaee in combination with a stack of razor set cases having vertical inwardly opening grooves in their rear walls fitting upon the legs of the bail and permitting free vertical movement of the cases upon the upper ends of the said legs and removal therefrom.

3. A display rack of the character described in claim 2 in which the connecting portion has end sections extending inwardly in opposite and converging directions and an intermediate looped section offset rearwardly from the plane in which lie the legs of the bail.

4. A display rack comprising a flat plastic base of rectangular contour, a bail of round spring wire having parallel rails anchored in fixed position at their lower ends adjacent to the rear side of the base and connected at their upper ends by an integral rearwardly ofiset portion, in combination with a stack of safety razor set cases of stiff, substantially rigid structure and rectangular contour each having a pair of parallel reentrant grooves in its rear wall opening inwardly toward each other and defining between them an inwardly offset panel, whereby the cases are held in stacked formation by their rear walls alone thus being exposed to unobstructed view from the front and sides and being free for removal by vertical movement from the said rails.

5. A plurality of generally rectangular razor set cases of stitf, substantially rigid structure, each having a bottom member and a cover pivotally connected thereto at the rear, the rearmost part of said case hearing two juxtaposed but oppositely-directed recesses spaced inwardly of the ends of said case, and a rack supporting said cases in vertically stacked and aligned formation including a base portion having an upper surface on which the lowermost case is adapted to rest, and a pair of parallel rails extending upwardly from said base portion, held in fixed relation to each other and passing through said recesses, said rails being connected at the top by an integral rearwardly-ofiset transverse member having end portions lying within the vertically-projected outlines of said case recesses when the cases are operatively assembled on said rack, and an intermediate portion offset rearwardly relative to said cases, portions of the rear walls of said cases bordering the said recesses overlapping the juxtaposed portions of the rails of said rack to resist removal of said cases therefrom through relative horizontal movement.

6. A plurality of generally rectangular razor set casees of stiff, substantially rigid structure, each having a bottom member and a cover pivotally connected thereto at the rear, the rearmost part of said case bearing two juxtaposed but oppositely-directed recesses spaced inwardly of the ends of said case, said recesses extending laterally away from each other, and a rack supporting said cases in vertically stacked and aligned formation in eluding a base portion having an upper surface on which the lowermost case is adapted to rest, and a pair of parallel rails extending upwardly from said base portion, held in fixed relation to each other and passing through said recesses at the innermost portions thereof, said rails being connected at the top by an integral rearwardlyofiset transverse member having end portions lying within the vertically-projected outlines of said case recesses when the cases are operatively assembled on said rack, and an intermediate portion oifset rearwardly relative to said cases, thus permitting free removal of a case without obstruction by direct upward movement.

7. A plurality of generally rectangular razor set cases bottom member and a cover pivotally connected thereto at the rear, the bottom member hearing at its rear two juxtaposed, but oppositely-directed recesses, the cover being devoid of any such recesses, and a rack supporting said cases in vertically stacked and aligned formation including a base portion having an upper surface on which the lowermost case is adapted to rest, and a pair of parallel rails extending upwardly from said base portion, held in fixed relation to each other and passing through said recesses at the innermost portions thereof, said rails being connected at the top by an integral rearwardlyotfset transverse member having end portions lying within the vertically-projected outlines of said case recesses when the cases are operatively assembled on said rack, and an intermediate portion offset rearwardly relative to said cases and thus permitting free rem-oval of a case by direct upward movement.

8. A display rack for supporting razor set cases of stiff, substantially rigid structure in stacked formation comprising a base member having an upper surface on which the lowermost of said cases is adapted to rest and a rear wall, and a bail member bent from wire and including a pair of parallel upright rail portions connected at their upper ends by an intermediate portion formed integrally with said rail portions and offset rearwardly, thereby permitting free removal of cases by upward movement, and two angularly bent foot portions at the lower ends of said rail portions located in recesses formed at the upper rear of said base member and extending through the rear wall of the base member, said foot portion being restrained against movement in said recesses by surrounding portions of said base member and detachable rearwardly through the recesses.

9. An advertising display of plastic safety razor cases, comprising in combination, a rack having a supporting base and a pair of spaced upright rails of round spring steel wire connected at their upper ends by a rearwardly disposed loop, and a stack of cases each having a tray with a cover hinged thereto to swing about a horizontal axis, and a rear wall with a pair of spaced re-entrant opposi'tely-opening grooves therein that taper upwardly in depth, the cases being threaded upon said rails and positively preventing spreading of the rails by engaging them in the grooves and the rails emerging from the grooves of the tray below the rear wall of the cover.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 282,810 Ward et al Aug. 7, 1883 423,647 Wells Mar. 18, 1890 671,486 Laumann Apr. 9, 1901 775,645 Bristow Nov. 22, 1904 836,555 Birnie Nov. 20, 1906 911,785 Vasconcelles Feb. 9, 1909 1,308,031 Bell July 1, 1919 1,668,573 Porter May 8, 1928 1,790,441 Fitz Power Jan. 27, 1931 1,820,841 Soref Aug. 25, 1931 2,128,114 Benedetti Aug. 23, 1938 2,206,083 Feibelman July 2, 1940 2,219,145 Wolf Oct. 22, 1940 2,448,171 Campbell Aug. 31, 1948 2,645,352 Petzold July 14, 1953 2,685,970 Springer et a1 Aug. 10, 1954 2,702,116 Shnitzler et al. Feb. 15, 1955 U. 5. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE PATENT OFF-ICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 2,825, 466 March 4, 1958 Meyer J, Shnitzler et ale It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

Column 3, line 12, for "supplemental" read supplemented column 4, line '70, after "cases" insert of stiff, substantially rigid structure column 5, line 46, for "cssees read cases =-g Signed and sealed this 3rd day of June 1958.,

(SEAL) Attest:

KARL AXLINE ROBERT c. WATS0l://

Attesting Officer Conmissioner of Patent 

